In a homebrew book I read that you should use some sugar with all-extract brewing unless its a Porter/Stout. The reason given is that the yeast can't always fully ferment out the malt. The book said to use about 200g to 500g (4oz to 7oz)sugar wheather it was corn/raw sugar etc. Would this effect the taste?

My last beer was a good example where the OG was 1062, FG only 1021.

The reason im asking is that with the below recipe, I think I need more fermentables. The batch is 6 gal, I was thinking of adding a little corn sugar for it.

The recipe looks fine as it is to me. I wouldn't add or change a thing.

I suspect the reason your last beer only attenuated to 1021 was due to a problem with fermentation. When you do the math, you reached ~65% attenuation, which, while distressingly low, is still something one experiences, especially with the little packets of yeast one gets with kits.

Kindly detail your fermentation for us from your last batch: type of yeast, how much yeast pitched, average temperature during fermentation, type of fermenter.

Managing fermentation is arguably the single most important skill brewers must master. You might wish to select another yeast (I remember you wrote elsewhere that yeast selection in NZ is poor) or do something else to provide more managability of your fermentations.

The recipe looks fine as it is to me. I wouldn't add or change a thing.

I suspect the reason your last beer only attenuated to 1021 was due to a problem with fermentation. When you do the math, you reached ~65% attenuation, which, while distressingly low, is still something one experiences, especially with the little packets of yeast one gets with kits.

Kindly detail your fermentation for us from your last batch: type of yeast, how much yeast pitched, average temperature during fermentation, type of fermenter.

Managing fermentation is arguably the single most important skill brewers must master. You might wish to select another yeast (I remember you wrote elsewhere that yeast selection in NZ is poor) or do something else to provide more managability of your fermentations.

Cheers,

Bob

P.S. Ponga rā! Kapa o Pango, aue hī!

Thanks for that post. Yes yeast selection very poor in NZ. We have most of the safale/saflager types however. OK maybe won't add sugar... hopefully still strong enough alc with good fermentation.

Pitched @ 16*C. Fermented @ 16-18*C for 3 weeks, then 18-19*C another 10 days. Re-hydrated the yeast in water before pitching. Steady fermentation for a week. Slow after that. Shook the bucket twice in the last week but only dropped 1 point.

Have since bottled, adding priming sugar so its only 1.9 carbonation. Hope its ok.

Yeah, 05 is more attenuating than 04. 05 is an American Ale yeast, like Wyeast 1056 or WLP001. 04 is an English strain.

It doesn't surprise me that your dark ale attenuated only that far. Dark extracts can contain quite a lot of unfermentable solids, compared to pale extract. I suggest you solve that by using the palest extract you can find as a base.

That said, all extracts are not created equal. Cooper's extracts tend to leave a full-bodied beer, as they contain larger amounts of unfermentable dextrins as compared to, say, Muntons. The fermentation characteristics of different extracts are something you'll have to figure out in your brewery over time.

I think your dark ale will be fine. Give a sufficient time in the bottle, carbonation will surely develop nicely.

Non-malt sugar in brewing is a hot topic. For most styles, it is unnecessary. For some, it is crucial (certain Belgian styles, for instance). When making ales of the type you seem to be brewing, sugar is not necessary.

It doesn't surprise me that your dark ale attenuated only that far. Dark extracts can contain quite a lot of unfermentable solids, compared to pale extract. I suggest you solve that by using the palest extract you can find as a base.

I can't believe you didn't rise to the All-Blacks bait!

Bob

Oh was that part of the All Blacks Haka? It looks different written down! Only know a few maori words :-)

Gonna be good watching the All Blacks thrash Aussie this weekend never the less

Yeah I was told by someone else here to use light extract instead of the dark one afterwards. I normally use Muntons extract, or else BlackRock a kiwi one. Most of my batches are worked out by how much malt I have, so I'd do a bigger gallon beer if using 3 cans or smaller if only 2 cans.

I Always use 1 cup of corn sugar with all my Coopers kits (plus 1.5 lbs pale liquid malt extract). Reason is that dry yeast isn't as good as liquid yeast, and a little bit of corn sugar will help the yeast start off and grow.

Oh was that part of the All Blacks Haka? It looks different written down! Only know a few maori words :-)

Gonna be good watching the All Blacks thrash Aussie this weekend never the less

I just wish I could get it on TV! Bloody stupid American football, with their endless breaks for rest and armour. Give blood! Play Rugby!

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Yeah I was told by someone else here to use light extract instead of the dark one afterwards. I normally use Muntons extract, or else BlackRock a kiwi one.

Muntons is a very good product. I'm not familiar with BlackRock, as it's not available here.

It's always a good idea to keep your base malt as pale an extract as possible. Think of it as a bowl of rice. By itself, it doesn't look like or taste like much. But if you put some black pepper on it, it's different. If you put some chicken tikka masala on it, it's wildly different. But at the core, at its base what fills you up is the bowl of rice.

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PS: How did you work out 65% attenuation?

Backwards. If you divide the FG by the OG after removing the 1.0, you get the difference. For example, FG=1.022=22, and OG=1.062=62. 22/62=0.35. 100-35=65. There's an easier way to do it but I misremember it. Someone else will weigh in and tell me how stupid I am.